Golden Practices Blog

Stellar Apology from Intuit: Service in a Box

Appended 7:27pm. How many thousands of 200,000 customers were affected by the inability to E-file their Turbo Tax returns on time last Tuesday night?. I was one of them.

The return was pretty much done a week or two earlier but I wanted to check one or two more things before I sent it in. So, after I got home from a dinner meeting, way too close to the stroke of midnight, I opened my return, checked a couple figures, and hit "submit."

To my horror, I received a message that said servers were overloaded, try again in 2 hours. Um it's 11:40. Uh oh.

I tried over and over again to no avail. Then I checked the Turbo Tax website and found a somewhat comforting message that told me there were problems, recommended we "keep trying...you might get through" and most impressively said that their biggest priority is to protect tax payers so they were working with the IRS to would assure returns would be considered filed timely.

Wow. Okay, cool. But how much hassle would it be to deal with the IRS to "prove" I'd tried to file on time and that "technology" hindered my efforts? Ugh.

I still kept trying and, miraculously, at the stroke of midnight, my return seemed to be submitting, but a message afterward said successful transmission couldn't be confirmed, check back in 24-48 hours.

Thankfully, as I get older, I am a lot more relaxed than I used to be about things I cannot control. I shrugged my shoulders, thought "I did what I could...I'll deal with this tomorrow..." and went to bed. Slept fine.

Here's where Intuit has blown me away. Jet Blue should take note!

Even before I confirmed whether my return actually went through (which it did), I received this (emphasis by me):

Dear TurboTax Customer,

We want to let you know that Intuit will be refunding any TurboTax credit card charges that were charged to your credit or debit card between 3 p.m. PDT Tuesday, April 17 and 4 a.m. PDT Wednesday, April 18.

We deeply regret the frustration and anxiety you may have experienced trying to e-file your return on April 17.

We worked closely with the IRS to allow taxpayers who were affected by the delay to file their returns until midnight tonight, Thursday, April 19, without penalty. Intuit will also pay any other penalties that customers incur as a result of the delay, although none are anticipated. We will be contacting you early next week with additional details about this refund. We value your business and appreciate your patience.

Sincerely,

Bob Meighan Vice President, TurboTax Customer Advocacy Intuit, Inc.

So, what did Intuit do right?

1. Got the word out on their website that their first priority was to PROTECT CUSTOMERS (even moreso than to fix the server problem!)
2. They IMMEDIATELY COMMUNICATED with customers by email that they were all over the problem and again reassured us, in writing, that we'd be okay with the IRS and that if, for some reason, the IRS would penalize us, they would cover those charges.
3. Sure they said they regretted customers' frustrations and anxiety, but ten times better, they PROVED THEIR SINCERITY by refunding all filing fees before most customers even thought to ask.
4. Intuit took steps to ensure no inconvenienced customer would be missed by blanket refunding every filer during affected hours, even those who filed successfully!

How much money did Intuit spend by this broad action? ($15 million BTW) Does it even matter?

Think of the risk to them of having however many thousands or tens hundreds of thousands of current and future customers FEARFUL of using their product. Now think of the loyalty they literally CEMENTED by their prompt, decisive action. Was the cost a drop in the bucket compared to future sales? I'd say so.

This is a fantastic example of a customer service situation handled beautifully. Sure, some customers were certainly very upset. But as I'm always saying, things happen! It's not whether or not you'll make a mistake, it's what you do when it happens.

People make mistakes. Companies do, too. And the more external factors we rely upon (suppliers, subcontractors, etc) the greater the risk of service foul-ups.

What's your company's reaction when something goes wrong? How about when a customer is frustrated or anxious--even if you DO come through in the end and deliver? Do you make up for the stress they might have in dealing with your organization?

My final thought on this...  let's reflect on what TurboTax sells. Is it a product? A "commodity" as some would say? A packaged "do it yourself" item? Well then, tell me this: How many product companies would refund for stress??

I think Intuit just proved they sell a service much more than they sell product. They sell the ability for people to be self-sufficient in preparing and submitting their taxes. They sell the ability for people to trust their product to let them do just that.

If Intuit can sell 'service: self-sufficiency and trust' in a bar-coded box, why do accountants and lawyers assert that they sell "hours" instead of peace of mind, solutions, and knowledge?

________
Here's a story from Computer World on the problem and the refunds.

SEO for Real People

Understanding SEO and learning what you need to do to get higher in the search engine rankings is now a whole lot easier!

Dianna Huff, author of B2B Marcom Writer Blog has written a fantastic e-book on the subject. A quick read at only 70 pages, the book is "Turning Clicks into Leads Through Search Engine Optimization."

You can see her intro and TOC here (link opens PDF).

It is a true how-to guide written for non-techies. It is under $50 and worth much, much more.  (no, I don't make a commission...I only promote what I believe in :-) The book is packed with just enough--but not too much--info. If you're involved with web performance at one level or another, it's a resource you'll appreciate.

And if you write for marketing purposes, be sure to read her blog...it's consistently good!

Who Makes Accounting Fun?

My friend Ed Kless (who works for Sage and is a fellow Fellow of VeraSage) promotes the Xerox notion, furthered by David Maister, that:

Employee Satisfaction -->  Customer Satisfaction -->  Increased Profitability (or at least, as Ed says, "Financial Performance")

If it's true, if Employee Satisfaction leads to the performance result, why don't we spend more time innovating in this area?  I think this chain is absolutely true because, quite frankly, you cannot give truly great service if you are miserable in your job.

Just look at Southwest Airlines' people versus, say, oh, any other airline...
or Disney people compared to Six Flags...
or The Container Store people compared to Organized Living...

So, is accounting fun? Does the profession "connect" with today's under 35 crowd?  Not much. But here are two cool examples!

1 - Did you know that the Maryland Association of CPAs has a presence on Second Life? Oh, and did I mention MACPA has a blog?? H&R Block and some firms are involved in Second Life, too. Interesting to keep an eye on, for sure--and a lot of work to do it right...let's see how they do.

2 - Did you know that the Hong Kong Institute of CPAs has a 2-minute music video called "Tute in Da House"? Fantastic!

Now, compare Tute in Da House with Ernst & Young's "Oh Happy Day" video... (pretty long, but the first minute conveys the whole concept).

Which is more cool? Which is more fun? How about more authentic? Which people would you rather work with?

What will your firm do to be more fun?  What should the profession do?

hat tip to Lyne Noella for the HKI video...

Marketing Investments for 2007

Just came upon an interesting article at DM News by Brent Hieggelke. The article, entitled "Marketing Executives Facing New Issues, Investments in 2007" begins:

Two recently published surveys around marketing indicate a shift in issues marketers face and the resulting change in investments planned by organizations as a result.

The annual Association of National Advertisers survey results show a switch in the top issues faced by marketers today: Number one this year is "integrated marketing communications," which ranked fourth in last year’s survey.

The second highest concern is "accountability," a top concern a year ago, and still a key issue for marketers to address. The next was "aligning marketing organization with innovation," which was second a year ago and continues to be a key issue marketers are focusing on again this year.

One of the most interesting moves in position comes from "Consumer control over what/how they view advertising." That moved up two spots to number six this year, from number eight last year.

The rankings from the ANA survey reflect the shift in Internet-based collaboration, consumer control, and user-generated content; which are pushing marketers to rethink how they invest their resources and address emerging opportunities.

This begs the question, how are marketers and marketing organizations planning to address these top concerns?

It's Official. Demand Outweighs Supply.

Some call this news story "good" but I call it unfortunate. Well, maybe the publicity is good...

Accounting made #1 on a list (in Am City Bizjournals) of most desired grads. It's official, accounting is hurting more than every other sector when it comes to needing qualified, interested people.

Demand officially outweighs supply. Dare I say the future we've worried about is here.

Bizjournals are reporting:

The number of new college grads hired by the service sector is expected to increase by 19.8 percent this year, based on National Association of Colleges and Employers' [NACE--a human-resources organization] findings.

Hot employment fields for grads

Employers are on the lookout this year for graduates holding the following bachelor's degrees, according to the NACE survey. They are listed in order of anticipated demand:

1. Accounting

2. Business administration and management

3. Computer science

4. Electrical engineering

5. Mechanical engineering

6. Information sciences and systems

7. Marketing and marketing management

8. Computer engineering

9. Civil engineering

10. Economics and finance

So, what can we do to make this profession more attractive? (to those in it as well as those thinking about it...)

We have people fleeing public accounting almost as fast as law (new lawyer defections are approx 85% in the first 5 years)--yet the law school pipelines are generating plenty more--not so with accountants.

And in accounting, we have people with 8, 9, 10 or more years of experience with ZERO desire to ever be owners in their firms.

Is it time to look at and try new ownership models? 
(Some of us think the traditional partnership model is broken.)

Explore a new "practice" equation, perhaps?
(My friend Ron Baker, author of Firm of the Future, explains the New and the Old Practice Equations, in this National Law Journal interview transcript.)

What will it take to open firms' eyes to the fact that it is time to do something other than let this become the next generation's problem. Let's work on improving the posterity of this profession!

'Cool' As a Differentiator

Inc. magazine features Jeff Garrison, the managing partner of Stonefield Josephson in CA.

What a fun way to break the stereotype of boring CPA. Jeff Garrison, Stonefield Josephson's managing partner, is featured in April 2007's Inc. magazine on page 86.

His write-up (in "The Inc. Life") includes these snips:

Jeffrey Garrison wants to shatter the CPA stereotype. “I’ve never worn a pocket protector,” he says. Instead, Garrison, who has led the Los Angeles-based full-service accounting firm Stonefield Josephson since 2002, prefers to don a leather jacket and straddle a Harley. It’s a look he displayed in an advertising campaign to show the firm’s personality.

“Accountants aren’t dorks,” says Garrison.

To prove it, the company maintains a “back porch” section on its website to showcase the private passions of its CPAs, which range from art collecting to surfing to cooking. On the site, CPAs offer recipes for paella, chicken tarragon, and other favorite dishes, and Garrison suggests wine pairings.

Exposing the firm’s soft side has helped it reach $40 million in annual revenue, says Garrison, and attract hip clients such as the Black Eyed Peas, the Sports Club/LA, Paul Frank Industries, and True Religion.

Among the things he "Can't Live Without"?

Buck the Talking Deer*, $150 “He’s a fake deer that’s mounted on my office wall. When people sit at my desk, I can talk through a microphone and the voice comes out of Buck, who moves his lips and head. He also sings. It cracks me up.”

I absolutely LOVE when firms are comfortable showing their true personalities! In this era of "reality" EVERYthing, authenticity not only sells, it's requisite!

________
* bummer, according to this site, Buck has been discontinued, but at least you can still get yourself a "Decoy Roy the Singing Mallard"...

Who ARE Your Best Clients? What Do You Do Once You Know?

If you'd like to read an article about client selection, CCH published my article, "Who ARE Your Best Clients? And What Do You Do Once You Know?" in their Feb 2007 issue of CPA Practice Management Forum.

It is loosely based on my presentation called "Evaluating Your Clients, Why and How" from Assoc. for Accounting Marketing's 2002 conference though I am proud to say that both my ideas and my process have evolved a lot since then!

The article is about Key Client Evaluation as a practice management tool and subtopics are:

• Traditional Client Grading Methods Are Flawed;
• Why “Grade” Clients; and
• Performing an Effective Client Evaluation

With CCH's permission, I share the PDF with you below (to my knowledge, the story is not posted on their site, it's just in their print publication).

Download cpa_pract_mgmt_final_who_are_clients.pdf

Sad, But True - the Life of a Marketer

A terribly funny You Tube video is making the rounds among legal marketing blogs. It's the 8-9 minute clip filmed to launch the recent LMA Conference (that's the Legal Marketing Association).

It's a great satire (or reality piece...?) of life as a marketing director in a professional service firm.

Particularly funny to me was the jab at how firms give great credibility to a consultant's advice after declining that same recommendation from their internal marketer. It's so true! I've experienced it myself when I was in-house. (Firms, don't do that!! You should listen to your marketers!!) .

Jeff Reade, president of Cole Valley Software, must've had a great time playing the difficult and somewhat clueless managing partner. Kudos to the LMA for opening their conference in such a fun and innovative way to effectively bring their 1000 attendees--from all their different perspectives--to a "common place" so they could relate to each well throughout the event.

And hat tip to Larry Bodine for a great write-up about the video.-

Is Owning Synonymous With Managing

In a recent meeting with Howard Wilkinson, Mercer & Hole's managing partner, we discussed the way decisions are made in many firms. His firm approaches things a bit differently than most.

Discussing this further, he wisely observed that, typically:

"Partnerships confuse management with ownership."

His firm does not. How does your firm approach management and decision-making?